By RICK KARLIN, Capitol bureau

Updated 10:11 pm, Wednesday, December 7, 2011

ALBANY — A group representing 40,000 retired public sector employees is suing New York state over an increase in the share retirees must pay toward their health insurance. The suit was filed Wednesday afternoon in state Supreme Court in Albany County.

The governor "didn't have the right to do this to current retirees," Stan Winter, president of the Retired Public Employees Association, referring to the increased share that state retirees — along with current workers — are now paying toward their health insurance premiums.

The suit names Cuomo and several other state officials and entities as defendants.

The increase was part of the recently settled labor contracts with two major state unions, the Public Employees Association and Civil Service Employees Association. It brings the employee share from 10 percent to 12 percent for singles and 25 percent to 27 percent for family plans.

Those in the higher pay grades, at roughly $40,000 or more, pay even more.

That could amount to thousands of dollars over the life of the contracts. Retirees on fixed income say it's too much.

Because retirees are not represented by any of the unions and they are not currently on the payroll, it's unclear what laws or rules, beyond tradition, prevents the governor from raising their share of health insurance costs.

The retirees' group — which claims approximately 3,000 members in the Capital Region — argue that there is precedent dating to 1983, when Civil Service laws alluded to the 10 percent and 25 percent shares of premium cost that were raised this year.

Winter said the suit aims to prevent a new precedent that would allow future governors to pass additional increases without negotiations.

"If that's OK now the way (Cuomo) did it, who knows how any future governor or anybody else would interpret this?" Winter said.

He added that the retirees group has tried to contact the governor's office about this matter, but haven't heard back.